Subspecies in India
This species is listed as Critically Endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (https://www.iucnredlist.org/).
Photo Gallery and Species Biology
This species is extremely rare. It inhabits inland wetlands and the forests of the eastern Himalayan foothills from the sea level up to 1,500m. It is found to be extinct in Nepal and possibly extinct in Bangladesh (BirdLife International 2018). This species is present in Myanmar, Bhutan, and India but in a very small number (BirdLife International 2018).
Conservation Status:
This species is listed as Critically Endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (https://www.iucnredlist.org/).According to the IUCN Red List Assessment, the population of this species is declining, with the current population size estimated between 50 and 249 individuals approximately. The threat to its persistence comes from habitat disturbance due to wide range industrialization, agriculture and other human encroachments (BirdLife International 2018).
| State | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | No date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andaman and Nicobar Islands | |||||||||||||
| Andhra Pradesh | |||||||||||||
| Arunachal Pradesh | |||||||||||||
| Assam | |||||||||||||
| Bihar | |||||||||||||
| Chandigarh | |||||||||||||
| Chhattisgarh | |||||||||||||
| Dadra & Nagar Haveli | |||||||||||||
| Daman & Diu | |||||||||||||
| Delhi | |||||||||||||
| Goa | |||||||||||||
| Gujarat | |||||||||||||
| Haryana | |||||||||||||
| Himachal Pradesh | |||||||||||||
| Jammu and Kashmir UT | |||||||||||||
| Jharkhand | |||||||||||||
| Karnataka | |||||||||||||
| Kerala | |||||||||||||
| Ladakh UT | |||||||||||||
| Lakshadweep | |||||||||||||
| Madhya Pradesh | |||||||||||||
| Maharashtra | |||||||||||||
| Manipur | |||||||||||||
| Meghalaya | |||||||||||||
| Mizoram | |||||||||||||
| Nagaland | |||||||||||||
| Odisha | |||||||||||||
| Paschimbanga | |||||||||||||
| Pondicherry | |||||||||||||
| Punjab | |||||||||||||
| Rajasthan | |||||||||||||
| Sikkim | |||||||||||||
| Tamil Nadu | |||||||||||||
| Tripura | |||||||||||||
| Uttar Pradesh | |||||||||||||
| Uttarakhand | |||||||||||||
| West Bengal | |||||||||||||
| Total |
BirdLife International 2018. Ardea insignis . The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T22697021A134201407. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22697021A134201407.en. Accessed on 30 January 2020.
Page citation
Anonymous 2025. Ardea insignis Hume, 1878 – White-bellied Heron. In Satose, V., A. Bayani, V. Ramachandran, P. Roy, and K. Kunte (Chief Editors). Butterflies of India, v. 2.17. Published by the Indian Foundation for Butterflies. URL: https://www.birdsofindia.org/ardea-insignis, accessed 2025/05/01.